And among the free tools available, we recommend DBAN, which offers a number of advanced data sanitisation methods. Use a third-party data destruction toolĪ specialised data destruction tool is the most secure way of wiping a computer, barring destroying the physical drive itself. Windows 10 has both features and adds the ability to backup and restore system images. Mac OS, of course, offers Time Machine or you can copy files manually. You can use the Windows Backup feature in Windows 7 or File History in Windows 8. To backup you can simply connect an external drive to the laptop and drag files and folders to it. Once you have connected the external drive to the laptop you want to wipe, you can check that it is big enough to store all the data you need. If everything is stored on one drive (usually the C: drive in Windows, right-click on the drive icon to see how much data is taking up space there. Here are some clear instructions.You will need to figure out how much storage you need.

Scroll down to 'Settings' and click 'View Advanced Settings.' Then go into 'Manage Saved Passwords,' and clear out all of the passwords.įirefox's password storage can be cleared in the Security settings. You will see a 'Passwords' tab, where you can view and delete passwords that are saved for each specific website.įor Microsoft Edge, go to the top-right of the browser window and click the three dots. On a Safari browser, go to the top left under Preferences. If you use the same username and password for Chrome at work as you do for your Chrome at home, deleting all your passwords here will also delete them on your home computer. You should only do this if you have a unique login just for your job. This will delete all the passwords from whatever Google account you're using at work. In Chrome, look for the ' Manage Saved Passwords' tab in the Chrome settings. If you use a particular browser only for work, or if your browser login is tied to your work ID, you can force the browser to forget all of your passwords.

Wipe computer clean